This is a very small collection of music hall
memorabilia of the late 1920s of the attorney and art collector Armando
Duron.

Background

Real Collectors Armando Duron: Passion and Patrimony – The Art of
Collecting Distinguished and elegant, Armando Duron, 52, lawyer and art lover,
cuts a classic figure against the backdrop of his impressive and eclectic 350
work collection of Chicano art. A world-acknowledged expert and foremost Chicano
art collector on par with Cheech Marin, Duron is an old-school caballero
[gentleman] of the first order. Active supporter of Self Help Graphics, the East
LA hub of Chicano art, Duron, a proud Angeleno, with roots in Ciudad Juarez,
Chihuahua Mexico, resides in Montebello. Married to Maria Salinas Duron, a high
powered business woman; [Executive VP Multicultural Sales Division of
Countrywide Home Loans,] they have four children Adeli [23], Isabel, [17]
Angelica, [16] Maximiliano, [13], for the Durons, living with art is a family
tradition. No dry, pontificating, vainglorious amasser of daubs on canvas, the
warm and articulate Armando Duron collects with an uncompromising esthetic and
moral compass of his own design. Gleefully shredding the rulebook of what is
considered 'typical' Chicano art, Duron passionately seeks pieces that counter
stereotypes of what is considered Chicano art; supporting visionary artists who
dare to paint outside the lines of what is 'classically' Chicano. He leaves no
stone unturned; going to countless openings in hole in the walls, established
galleries, artists studios, garages, storefronts, street corners; wherever art
is born. The obvious result is a broader perspective that facilitates growth of
the art, artists and the market. Duron sees himself as a gatekeeper of the
purist flame; a conduit for information, a touchstone to an alternate Chicano
art reality. Humble yet sophisticated, convivial yet understated, the
contrasting yet complimentary facets of Senor Duron dazzle. This is a man that
deeply appreciates life; his family, friendships, his art. Duron is keenly aware
of his good fortune, having 'come from nothing.' His legal work and extra
curricular helping of others are well known throughout the community, but he's
the soul of discretion. An extraordinary host, a supportive listener, and an
open minded free thinker, his unwavering opinions on collecting are elevated,
exacting, and challenge the immoral art world's handling of artists. Since day
one of their 26 year buying spree, Duron and his wife Mary have religiously kept
a book with every invitation in a plastic sleeve. This documents the origins of
the relationship and date. After some 350 purchases, consuming enough wine and
cheese to sink the Titanic, times, places and details can blur. Unlike some
collectors who prefer to go around the dealers hoping for a hungry artist's lack
of business acumen, Duron respects the artist/gallerist relationship. Acutely
aware of the artist's dependency on a selling outlet, Duron scrupulously plays
by the rules, unless he feels that the artist is being abused by their
representative, and not being paid. Surprisingly, this has only happened twice
in all the time he has been collecting. Mercifully, Duron is financially
unmotivated. He has a certain distain for those who purchase with eyes on the
resale value. 'Those are buyers, not collectors.' His collecting criteria raises
the bar of authenticity for what has evolved from a mere 'calling' into an art
form all its own: The Art of Collecting 101. The term 'hobby' laughably
understates the commitment that Duron evinces. The Duron home hosts an elegantly
appointed reference library of every book published on the subject of Chicano
art. A polished blond wood art deco refectory table dominates a deliciously
sunny marigold room. A swirling Gronk blown glass sculpture dissects the table.
A hand-crafted, massive silver necklace commissioned by Armando for a special
anniversary for wife Mary features painted cameos of the children and Armando.
Bookshelves are peppered with small sculptures and Chicano objets d'art. At the
very end of the library is a walk in vault of unhung works; treasures waiting
for their turn on the walls of the home. The Durons rotate the works at will.
The most recent purchase is a tiny photograph of a painting; the revolutionary
new concept being that private collector are merely sponsors of art, it must
hang in public places where the masses can see it; but the actual owner gets a
small photograph of the original. Foremost, Duron views himself as a guardian of
Chicano art as a historical point of reference, and a chapter to be constantly
rewritten. Real Talk LA's Associate Publisher and Art Dealer Juan Rodriguez
interrogates Real Collector Armando Duron in his Montebello home. RTLA: The
house is on fire: your family is safe...which single painting do you carry with
you under your arm into safety? Armando Duron: It's a question that people ask,
and it always makes me shiver. Recently, I had this dream, the house was on
fire, and I was there...just melting. I was part of the art; I could never
decide. I would go with it. RTLA: Distinguish a patron of Chicano art versus a
collector of Chicano art. Armando Duron: A lot of people can call themselves
collectors of Chicano art but if they are collecting for commercial reasons, for
financial purposes, then they are not really collecting Chicano art. They're
collecting something else, they're collecting a commodity. Pretty pictures.
Things to decorate rooms but they are not collecting Chicano art. RTLA: Define
Chicano art. Armando Duron: For me, Chicano art is what moves the Chicano soul
and references the Chicano experience. Because Chicano art has a very clear
reference point, it's about understanding what your responsibility is within the
Chicano community. RTLA: What is your relationship to the art? Armando Duron:
Because of a certain amount of discretionary income, because of who we [my wife
and myself] are as Chicanos, this is what have acquired here isn't ours. We are
the custodians. Of the the patrimony of our community. The real issue is what is
Chicano art? Not what is a collection. You can go see shows that claim to be
Chicano art but are not coming from a Chicano perspective. The whole point of
Chicano art is to control our history to be the people who are disseminating
what our history is about; what out culture is about. And not let others do it
for us. That's the genesis of this collection, somebody has to put this
collection together and say for our community, primarily what is our cultural
patrimony and our experience. Historically your experience has not been cared
for, has not been appreciated. It has only begun recently. This is an empowering
process but not for us as individuals it's not designed that way, it's for the
entire community. RTLA: What significance has Chicano art had for our community?
Armando Duron: It was always a part of the community. Through murals, our whole
culture was very art driven whether you talk about Pre-Colombian, the
Mextihaque, the last 500 years, the Spanish part of it has always been
artistically oriented. It hasn't always been appreciated. I'm working on an
article entitled Chicano art before Chicanos. I'm talking about Mexicanos,
Californians, painting before the '60's, because there was art produced before
that time, it's always been important. One of the interesting facts about the
movement versus the Black Power movement, was how important art was from the
beginning, how central it was. How central a role it seemed to play, even in the
most political days-the posters, the signs, and the exhibitions were always
initially very political and always part of the movement. RTLA: Are there
particular iconographies in Chicano art? How do you define Chicano art? Armando
Duron: Accepted theories on iconography say that there is a specific Chicano art
has bold colors, that Chicano art has callaveras, Chicano art has nopales, has
cars, that it has virgins, that sort of thing. That's not to say that it's bad
but it's to say that it's limited to assume that it all it is. Most of the works
that you see here on the walls here don't look very Chicano at all. The
unofficial title of what you saw today is dis-Chicano art. Everyone from a Linda
Vallejo to a Gronk, to a Camille Rose Garcia, to a Monique Prieto are producing
works that don't look Chicano at all-that doesn't look Latino at all. They don't
appear to reference that experience, and yet I submit that if you look at it
closely you will find those references, you just don't find them the way that
Chicano art is supposed to look. RTLA:Is there a difference between the older
generation and newer generation, Armando Duron: As a general rule yes, first
generation and second generation were producing very political art, very clearly
referenced Chicano iconography, very clearly referenced scenes. And when you
speak to them you find that a lot of them would like to move away from it but
can't. When they try, people are shocked, people are disturbed. People say 'that
doesn't look like your other stuff.' In order to be understood, to keep selling,
established artists will stick to what the have been doing. That's one of the
big tragedies. RTLA:Are Chicano painters mostly moved by politics? Armando
Duron: All art is political. Regardless of what their genre is. They're painting
from a perspective of what is going on in their environment at the time. That's
a constant. RTLA:Do you have a special connection to any one piece? Armando
Duron: Oh no, they're all our babies! There's a story to each piece. The way we
acquire a piece is by falling in love with the piece. That's the way; you have
to know yourself well enough to know. Just because somebody says 'buy that,'
doesn't mean I will. If everybody else hates it, that doesn't matter. We've
proven that enough times in this house. RTLA: How do you know when to buy a
piece? Armando Duron: It's a feeling that comes to me very literally right here
in my forehead in the middle of my eyes, when I see something that is perfect.
It stays right here, and I can't get it out of my mind. Then I know that I gotta
have that one. RTLA: How did you discover your passion for collecting. Armando
Duron: It's not a passion for collecting. RTLA: Is it a hobby? Armando Duron:
[shuddering] No, no - it's not that. RTLA: Are you an art lover? Armando Duron:
Definitely an art lover. But in the sense that in a lot of ways it's a mission,
it's not just that we love art, and that we love artworks, it's collecting a
body of work that's telling a story. Today's story of the Chicano community. We
can lead to posterity as part of that narrative. And so it this is what that
community was going through at that time, we can see this story develop. Some
psychoanalyst can tell you that it comes from a need. I can tell you where it
comes from; it comes from not having anything when I grew up. I truly love the
works, I'm truly grateful to the artists who produce them; I really admire the
artists and hope to keep doing it for a while. From Real Talk LA's Associate
Publisher and Art Dealer Juan Rodriguez

Extent

Half linear foot

Restrictions

Copyright has not been assigned to the Chicano Studies Research Center. All
requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted
in writing to the Archivist and/or the Librarian at the Chicano Studies Research
Center Library. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the UCLA
Chicano Studies Research Center as the owner of the physical items and is not
intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also
be obtained.

Availability

Collection is open for research. Access is available by appointment for UCLA
student and faculty researchers as well as independent researchers. To view the
collection or any part of it, please contact the archivist at
archivist@chicano.ucla.edu